X Marks the Heart
by x.MyrtenasterRose.x
Summary: "There is more treasure in the world than simple gold. As such, there are more dangers out there than just us pirates." [Pirate Captain!Ruby. Mermaid!Weiss. White Rose. ON INDEFINITE HIATUS.]
1. Chapter 1

.:X Marks the Heart:.

* * *

 **Chapter One**

"The _Fall Maiden_ is dead ahead, captain! We have her in our sights!"

Captain Ruby Rose grinned as she swung herself up into the crow's nest of her own beloved ship, The _Crescent Rose_. Landing next to her first mate, Jaune, she took the offered binoculars. As he had said, she could see the looming form of a ship on the horizon. Moving her aim up, Ruby focused in on the flag the ship flew.

The black flag with the insignia of the red heart formed from a pair of slippers.

 _Glass slippers_.

Ruby's heart began to thump from the excitement of what that flag—that _ship—_ meant.

Cinder Fall; perhaps the fiercest pirate ever known to sail these heavenly seas. Captain of the _Fall Maiden,_ which, according to everyone at the last town they had docked in, carried some of the most priceless treasure known to man.

And now two months of tracking had been brought to fruition.

"Pyrrha!" Ruby hollered down at the redheaded girl busy at the wheel. "Have everyone open the sails! The wind's in our favor today, and we cannot let that ship out of our sights!"

"Yes, ma'am, captain!" Pyrrha responded with a smile and salute. "Ren! Nora! You heard her!"

As two more of her crew members went to work on the sails, Ruby turned to Jaune, the wide, near-childlike smile never having left her face.

"This is it, Jaune!" she exclaimed. "That treasure is as good as ours!"

Jaune's obviously nervous smile poorly reflected her own.

"I know your answer has been consistent the last nine times I've asked, but for the sake of making it an even ten, I'll ask again: Are you sure about this, Ruby?"

Ruby chuckled and rolled her eyes. "Jaune, there's nothing to fear! I have the best crew in the world!"

"Yeah, but…" Jaune trailed off, eyes taking in the looming form of the ship ahead of them with an inkling of fear. "This is Cinder Fall we're about to raid. She's _ruthless_! I mean, have you heard what she does with her prisoners or anyone who crosses her?"

Ruby opened her mouth to answer, but Jaune just continued without paying her any mind.

"She's _burns_ her mark onto their wrist and then tosses them in the sea to swim their way to help! I don't know about you, but I'm not that good of a swimmer."

"Well, good thing we won't end up her prisoners then," Ruby said with a grin. "And you should know that anyone who crosses _us_ doesn't get away that easy either. I'd say all that loot below deck speaks to that."

Jaune just sighed. "Fine. You're the boss, boss."

Tipping her hat to him playfully, she shot him a wink before leaping from the crow's nest and landing on the deck ten feet below with grace. Immediately, Pyrrha was calling for her.

"They're finally acknowledging us, captain!"

Ruby turned to the bow of the ship to sure enough see the _Fall Maiden_ rotating in the waters before them. Her grin widened, a hardened glint setting in her eyes.

"Perfect," she muttered under her breath. "Get Yang and Blake up here! It's all hands on deck, guys!"

"You got it!" Nora exclaimed before dashing below deck, soon returning with Ruby's sister, Yang, and her girlfriend, Blake.

"Where you want us, sis?" Yang called to the front of the ship where Ruby still stood.

"Yang, cannons; Blake, help Pyrrha at the wheel. Knowing Cinder, things may get choppy here. Ren, Nora, and Jaune, swords out; you're with me in the raid."

Jaune visibly blanched at his orders, yet still pulled his sword out, it visibly shaking in his grasp.

"Heh, right."

Ruby stood proudly at the front of the ship, confident in intercepting the infamous pirate captain as well as the skills of her crew. They may not look like much at face value, but they had garnered quite the reputation themselves. After all, it wasn't every day that a crew led by an eighteen year-old girl could plunder an entire village in the dead of the night and make off scott-free. Appearing innocent on the outside came in handy more often than not on the high seas.

Peering through her binoculars once more, Ruby observed the enemy.

"They're loading the cannons!" she informed. "Yang, make sure we're ready to counter!"

"Loaded and ready, captain!"

"Pyrrha, have us face west! We strike first!"

"Yes, ma'am!"

As _Crescent Rose_ began her turn, Ruby spun to address her other three companions.

"Once all the firing starts, we'll swing over in the confusion. Cinder's crew is small like ours, so we shouldn't be outnumbered. Cinder won't engage us on her own unless absolutely necessary, so I'll head below deck to this loot of theirs to try and draw her out."

"How much force do we use, captain?" Ren asked.

"The minimal necessary," Ruby replied. "We may be pirates, but I'd like to keep killing off my repertoire. Simply disarm them. Tie them up, toss their weapons into the sea, whatever you feel you need to do. The people may think Cinder's ruthless, but I believe she'll still follow the basics of the Code."

Jaune just chuckled nervously.

"In position, captain!" Pyrrha then cried out.

Ruby looked up to confirm and grinned.

"Yang! Fire!"

A mighty crack rocked the ship, immediately followed by the groan of the _Fall Maiden_ as it sustained their hit.

"Prepare for impact!" Blake hollered, seeing the opposing crew lighting cannons of their own.

"Ren! Nora! Jaune!" Ruby ordered. "To the ropes!"

"Ma'am!"

As the _Crescent Rose_ took its own impact, Ruby used the opportunity to swing from her ship to the other, landing showily in front of a member of Cinder's brigade.

"Well, well," a snarky voice sounded. "If it isn't the Red Baroness."

"Torchwick," Ruby addressed with a grin. "You're looking fabulous as always."

"Okay, kid," the redhead growled. "Shut your trap and draw your weapon."

Ruby's grin nearly split her face as she hollered, "Nora!"

Pink boots immediately collided into the side of Torchwick's head, Ruby's own redheaded crewmate engaging in battle. Seeing Ren locked with Mercury, and Jaune tentatively entertaining Emerald, Ruby nodded before heading below deck. Cannon-fire continued to shake the ship, but Ruby refused to be deterred. They had been tracking the _Fall Maiden_ for too long. She _was_ going to take Cinder's treasure.

Whatever it was.

Kicking open the cargo hold, Ruby halted in her steps, hand instantly reaching for her sword.

There, sitting atop a small mountain of gold, was Cinder Fall.

"Ruby Rose," she crooned with a haunting smile. "We meet again."

"'Tis the game we play," Ruby quipped with a slight bow.

It was true; she and Cinder had been dancing with the other for a good year. Whenever one raided the other, swords clashed, but the damage sustained was always minimal. While Cinder was usually ruthless with any other ships she encountered, there was something about the young pirate captain that captivated her. Instead of merely using all her force, she toyed instead. It was a game of give and take.

"I do hear, however, that you've acquired something that's quite the talk among each and every port," Ruby continued. "Care to share?"

Cinder grinned, rolling her eyes at the young girl.

"Perhaps. Though I warn you, it's more dangerous than any gold."

Ruby's stance drooped slightly, her face contorting in confusion.

"Dangerous?"

Cinder simply giggled. "You silly girl; there is more treasure in the world than simple gold. As such, there are more dangers out there than just us pirates."

Ruby had to admit she wasn't quite sure what Cinder meant, though it wasn't unusual that the captain would tease her with riddles and jokes with each of their meetings.

"Well, dangerous or not, you have piqued my interest," Ruby acknowledged.

"Indeed," Cinder quipped in a bored tone, picking at one of her nails. "We'll settle this the usual way then?"

"My crew is currently engaged with yours above deck," Ruby explained. "The only two missing out on the fun are the captains."

"Well, then, Miss Rose," Cinder hopped off her throne and drew her own jet-black sword, "visitor gets first strike."

Ruby extended her own silver blade and gripped its red hilt tightly, finding a comfortable stance. Grin lighting her face once more, she swung.

Cinder easily parried her, but again, Ruby wasn't looking to injure. As the two captains moved about the cargo hold, each strike was blocked by the other's own. Though they appeared locked in a grueling battle, the easy smiles both women held spoke the truth. This was more a graceful dance, simply wishing to ensnare the other in their web before release.

Their careful waltz only ended as Ruby performed a twirl to parry Cinder's upward swing, stopping her sword so it rested lightly upon the older woman's neck.

"Checkmate," Ruby jabbed with a giggle.

"Indeed," Cinder grinned. "I concede then, Ruby Rose."

Ruby couldn't help fist pumping in victory as Cinder handed over her sword, backing away with hands raised. It was just then that Yang and Blake descended the stairs as well.

"We are victorious, captain," Blake announced. "Ren and Nora have Emerald, Mercury, and Roman's weapons, and Jaune is watching so Neo doesn't fire anymore cannons."

"I've just finished here as well," Ruby explained. "Please escort Cinder above deck. Pyrrha can watch them while we collect our winnings."

With an inclining nod of Blake's head, Cinder went with the girl. Yang immediately clapped Ruby on the back.

"We sure showed them, Rubes!" she snickered. "I don't know what Jaune was so worried about. Nothing ever happens with these guys, yet he gives you the same threatening spiel each time."

"I won't deny Cinder isn't dangerous, but until she makes the first real move, I'm content with this game we have. Besides," Ruby gestured to the many piles of treasure strewed around them, "not every pirate will willingly give up their gold at the first hit landed on them."

Once the rest of her crew sans Pyrrha arrived below deck, Ruby addressed them with her token smile.

"Okay, you all know the drill," she addressed. "Take only what you can carry. We'll make sure to dock at the next port to celebrate and spend our winnings."

With nods from each of her friends, they spread to take whatever they fancied. Ruby, too, took her time to browse. She stuffed a few gold coins in her pockets, as well as collecting quite the stunning sword with a gold handle, but mostly she just basked in her victory.

To be quite honest, Ruby didn't win against Cinder too often. They had probably crossed paths a dozen times, yet Ruby didn't even hold half the wins. Still, each time they met, her crew grew in experience, and more and more lately they had been taking home the wins as a result.

Busy in her internal celebration, Ruby would have missed the latch on the floor in front of her had she not tripped over it. Making out that it appeared to be trap door of sorts, Ruby hauled the latch open and lifted up the door.

Immediately, the smell of mold filled her nostrils.

As well as a hint of blood, the metallic scent making her nose twitch. Sword drawn out of sheer caution, Ruby descended.

The ladder dropped her in a room half the size of the cargo hold above her, yet Ruby immediately knew what this "room" was.

Holding cells. Three of them surrounded her; two of the three filled with water, which leaked in from around them, the wood having rotted over time.

Still, that didn't explain the smell of blood, which had only grown stronger.

Reaching for an old lantern that hung on the wall, Ruby quickly lit it, its orange glow giving the space an even more haunting feel. Though it worked to illuminate the figure curled in the corner of one of the cells.

Gulping, yet squashing any fears, Ruby approached said cell.

"H-Hello?"

There was no response to her feeble introduction.

As the ship moved with one of the waves, the door to the cell slid open. Ruby assumed it had either been damaged in their battle or it never worked in the first place. Upon slowly entering the cell, Ruby realized it hadn't needed to be locked anyway.

The...person, Ruby assumed, had been chained to the wall. Trailing her eyes and the lantern down the figure, Ruby gasped, the lantern clattering to the floor in her shock.

As well as the figure's arms being chained to the wall, where its feet should have been was instead a tail, chained similarly to its arms. The glow from the lantern danced off the pattern of scales, two fins swishing back and forth limply in the water.

"A…mermaid?" Ruby uttered.

Picking up the lantern once more, Ruby approached even more, kneeling down. Sure enough, the tail didn't go away, confirming Ruby wasn't just seeing things. There was really a mermaid in front of her.

Something Ruby had thought were only stories.

Diverting her attention from the ice blue tail that flopped every now and again, Ruby trailed her eyes upwards. It had a nasty looking gash to its side that steadily pumped out blood, and Ruby immediately took off her vest to press it to the open wound, hoping to staunch the bleeding.

A very feminine groan came from the mermaid at the pressure. Ruby then shyly glanced at its chest to confirm that, yes, the figure before her was indeed a woman, if the white sea shells covering its breasts were any indication. Ruby blushed before looking away and mumbling an apology.

Finally observing the girl's face, Ruby was struck by how a face covered in blood and grime could still be so beautiful. While dirty, and with a single faded scar across her left eye, Ruby could tell that the girl's skin was otherwise flawless, and letting herself indulge only slightly, Ruby ran her thumb across the girl's stomach as she continued to hold her vest down. The skin beneath her was smooth to the touch, and Ruby could only shiver.

"Ruby? You down here?" Yang's voice flitted from above.

"Y-Yeah!" Ruby called. "Bring Blake, would you? I need some help."

"Everything okay?" Yang asked as she approached. Ruby could hear her come to an abrupt halt as she uttered out, "Woah."

"Oh my god," Blake whispered, obviously shocked as well.

"I'm not crazy, right?" Ruby looked over her shoulder to ask. "She's real?"

"A-Assuming that tail doesn't just slide off, y-yeah," Yang mumbled.

"Well, regardless of if she's a real mermaid or not, she's hurt, and we're not leaving her here," Ruby said firmly. Frowning, she added, "Cinder has some explaining to do."

"Is she conscious?" Blake then inquired.

"She groaned when I applied pressure to her wound, but other than that, she hasn't stirred aside from her tail."

"We probably need to get her submerged back in water quickly then," the ebony-haired girl explained. "If she's…really anything like in the stories, mermaids can't survive out of water for long."

"Help me get these chains off then."

Yang moved forward to help, and only then did the girl stir.

"P-Plea… Plea-se d-don't…"

Ruby's heart lurched as she came face to face with terrified blue eyes, strands of wet white hair sticking to the girl's face. Trying to reassure her with a smile, Ruby moved her hair out of the way gently.

"We're not going to hurt you," she told her softly. "We're freeing you, okay?"

"W-Why?"

"Because you're hurt and need help," Ruby replied as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"I need…water," the girl croaked next.

"I know," Ruby said. "How much longer can you hold out? We still need to get these chains off and get you back to our ship."

The girl immediately started to struggle at the mention of another ship.

"N-No!" she cried weakly. "Please…"

"But you need help!" Ruby persisted, still trying to keep her voice calm, but firm. "We can't just…turn you loose in the sea with your open wound! You're probably really weak and fatigued too. You need rest. Just…let us treat you overnight, and you're free in the morning."

Giving in, the girl nodded limply before her eyes slid shut once more. Yang, with all her impressive strength, managed to pry apart the cuff of the chains enough to slide the girl's wrists and tail out. Ruby, making sure to keep pressure on her stomach wound, immediately picked her up bridal-style, cradling her against her chest to keep warm.

She couldn't help the affectionate smile she sent the unconscious creature as she murmured, "You're going to be okay."

"So," Yang then spoke, punching her fists together with a nasty grin, "interrogation time?"

Blake scoffed before placing a hand on her girlfriend's shoulder.

"Easy there, tiger," she purred. "Why don't we let the captain handle this?"

Grumbling, as she hadn't had much action this time, Yang conceded and followed Ruby up to the deck. Upon emerging, Cinder immediately grinned.

"I see you've found my precious cargo."

"What's this all about, Cinder?" Ruby asked, her tone serious and level. "How long has she been down there?"

Cinder shrugged casually. "Lost track of the days, honestly. We've been feeding her, don't worry, plus we finally put all that standing water down there to good use. She's alive."

"She's hurt," Ruby ground out.

"She didn't come easy."

"Why do you have her?"

Again, Cinder shrugged. "Insurance. Let's just say there's more out there in the world than you know, Ruby Rose, and I can guarantee you taking her will lead trouble right to your doorstep."

"Then let trouble come," Ruby stated without fear. "I won't sit by and let you continue to torture her. She comes with us."

"Those are the rules of our little game, right? Winner takes what they want? Who am I to stop you?"

"I'm tired of your games, Cinder, if you're going to make torture of innocents a regular thing."

At this Cinder stood, glaring down at Ruby with a fire in her amber eyes. Yang and Blake instantly stepped forward to keep the opposing captain at bay.

"You should know by now who you are dealing with, Little Rose," she nearly growled. "I've continued to make an exception for you against my crew's desires, but perhaps I'll have to cut these ties between us once and for all."

"Go ahead," Ruby challenged. "Although I can guarantee, if you do, next time we meet things will be much different."

Cinder simply smiled at the threat and leaned back against the mast.

"Indeed. Take her then," she said. "Take her and get off my ship."

"Gladly."

Yang and Blake stayed behind, waiting until their captain had crossed safely back to the _Crescent Rose_ —Pyrrha had lowered a board for Ruby to cross upon seeing the captain would be unable to swing back over. Jaune, Ren, and Nora all followed, and only once Yang and Blake were back on board themselves did the blonde toss over the weapons they had taken from Cinder's crew after their duel.

"Pyrrha, put as much distance between us and the _Fall Maiden_ as quickly as you can. And watch our back in case they try anything. I'll be in my quarters."

"Yes, captain," Pyrrha nodded, looking somberly, yet with awe at the girl still in the arms of her captain.

"You need a hand, sis?" Yang asked as Ruby walked past, seeing the hardened glint in her eyes in her silver eyes.

"I'll be fine."

Yang exchanged a concerned glance with her girlfriend as they watched Ruby head inside with their newest collection.

Things were indeed about to change for Ruby Rose and her crew.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

"That's the fifth time in the past ten minutes you've looked over your shoulder at the door," Blake mentioned with little interest as she turned another page in her novel.

After Ruby had retreated with that… _creature_ hours ago, Yang hadn't stopped fretting. Nora had to literally drag the blonde to the cafeteria and threaten to force feed her if she wouldn't eat on her own. Yang's bowl of stew still remained mostly untouched, though she would nab a quick bite after every pointed glare from Nora.

"My little sister—our _captain_ —is in her quarters, _alone_ , with a… A…"

"Mermaid?" Blake offered blandly.

Yang pounded the table. "Exactly!" she cried. "And no one else is worried?"

"The thing was unconscious," Jaune pointed out. "Even if it…or, she, I guess, woke up, I doubt she could do any harm."

"There is a reason Ruby is the captain and not one of us," Ren added. "You of all people should have faith in her capabilities."

"I do!" Yang sighed exasperatedly. "It's just… We have a _mermaid_ on board; no one else is even the smallest bit unnerved by that?"

"I'll admit, I never thought they were real," Jaune piped up again, "but the fact that we haven't been attacked by a whole group of them yet says something, right? Maybe they aren't as vicious as the stories?"

"That, or they're just biding their time…" Yang grumbled.

"There's little we can do about that until it actually happens, dear," Blake said. " _If_ it happens," she added with a glare of her own.

"Fine," the blonde sighed, pulling her bowl closer to her. "But if Ruby hasn't emerged in another hour, I'm checking in on her. Capabilities be damned."

* * *

The first thing she noticed upon waking was the refreshing feel of water surrounding most of her body for the first time in a while. Still, upon noticing it not completely encompassing her, she forced her eyes open only the slightest. She could feel a presence, and didn't want to alert them to her consciousness until she had familiarized herself with her surroundings.

The as-was-quickly-becoming-familiar sway of a ship told her she hadn't quite freed herself, but the lack of any shackles around her wrists was one fear off her list. A gentle, easy swish of her tail revealed no chains there either.

So she was on a ship, but not restrained anymore.

The room she was in was pretty big, but upon noticing a four-post bed across the space, decided this definitely wasn't any kind of prison hold. In fact... She looked down and carefully trailed her hand around the porcelain bin that she was inside.

A bathtub?

Finally, she looked to her right to see a young girl nodded off in the chair she was sitting in, one foot casually propped up on the side of the tub. Seeing the only potential threat in the room seemed asleep, she opened her eyes fully.

Indeed, she was in a bathtub; quite an elaborate, deep one at that, filled to the brim so only her shoulders and head broke water. It was nice and warm too, and she immediately closed her eyes again in bliss before humming and submerging herself fully.

Clearly that wasn't a good call, as a sharp pain in her side instantly flared in detest. Opening her eyes, she saw blood slowly leaking from a bandage wrapped around her stomach. Poking her head back out, she looked to her 'captor.' Had she been the one to treat her wound? The dressing was crude at best, but the consideration for her wellbeing was a bit flattering after her last host.

Especially because all she had ever heard about humans was their cruel tendencies and greed. The first ship she had been on had only proved the stories to be right, but she had a gut feeling deep inside her that this ship would be different.

The fact that she wasn't being adequately guarded without any sort of bonds attested highly to that fact.

Even 'stranded' in a bathtub, it wouldn't take much effort to get to one of the windows and release herself back into the sea. Though it would probably be a lot harder with this injury of hers, she thought bitterly.

A soft yawn to her right had her freezing, sinking so only her eyes peered above the surface. Cautiously, she looked back to the only other occupant in the room. She was waking, and nerves immediately started to toss and turn in her stomach, much like the sea was doing to the ship at this very moment.

"Oh!" the girl exclaimed upon seeing wide blue eyes blinking up at her. "You're awake now!"

Sitting up and leaning forward, the girl leaned towards her fast enough to startle, and she quickly shuffled as far away from the girl as she could—which wasn't much, given the width of the tub.

"Sorry! Sorry!" the girl was quick to cry. "I didn't mean to scare you, and I promise I'm not going to hurt you, okay?"

"Why am I here?" she asked, fixing the girl with a hard stare and trying to maintain composure.

"Don't you…remember?" The girl was now cocking her head in a manner that could only be described as adorable. "I found you on Cinder's ship. You were pretty messed up, but I took you back to _my_ ship, treated your wound as best I could with my limited abilities, and put you in this tub, because it's all I could think of to get you back in water."

"Your dressing is too loose," she pointed out, a bit of bite added to appear more confident than she really was.

The girl immediately looked crestfallen, and she found herself wanting to remedy the situation for whatever reason, instantly regretting her last quip. Still, this girl was a human, and humans were not to be treated with anything but scorn.

"Do you…want me to fix it?" the girl the offered.

"I can do it myself."

"O-Oh." The girl looked at her surroundings briefly before looking back to her. "Well?"

"It can wait."

Delicate eyebrows curved in confusion. "O~kay… Well, what's your name?"

"You mentioned this was _your_ ship?" she instead fired back a question of her own.

The girl didn't seem to mind her inquiry being brushed off as she quickly grinned, the atmosphere surrounding them lifting incredibly in response.

"Yeah!" she exclaimed. "This is the _Crescent Rose_! I'm its captain, Ruby Rose!"

"And do you make it a habit to take prisoners?"

The captain's silver eyes immediately widened at the accusation.

"You're not my prisoner! I-I just wanted to help you back with Cinder where you _were_ being held prisoner. I've never seen a mermaid before, but you were hurt and I couldn't just leave you there. Yang always says I've got too big a heart to be a pirate captain, but this was different than not eating a fish simply because its fin was ripped, and—."

"Weiss."

"Huh?"

Against all odds, a small smile quirked the corner of her lips as she rolled her eyes.

"My name; it's Weiss."

Ruby grinned. "That's almost as pretty as you are!"

A strange flutter in her stomach at the compliment had her smile faltering, quickly setting Ruby off again.

"I-I mean—!" she attempted to rectify. "Well, yeah, I did _mean_ that, but I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. I'm sorry!"

Scoffing as her smile—now more a smirk—returned, Weiss simply uttered, "You're quite the dolt, aren't you?"

That worked to make Ruby grin again, so Weiss was quite pleased with herself. Might as well continue down this path.

"Thank you for helping me," she finally admitted.

"How…" Ruby looked down at her boots momentarily before hesitantly looking back to Weiss. "How long were you down there? Cinder wouldn't say."

"It must have been going on a week; though with the limited light down there, I can't say for certain."

Ruby's blood began to boil again.

"How did you get hurt?"

"Harpoon."

"And they left it untreated?!"

"Would you treat the wound of your prisoners?" Weiss bit back with more malice than intended.

"Well, I wouldn't take any prisoners to begin with, but Cinder mentioned she was keeping you as insurance, so I suppose I'd want that insurance to stay healthy and not succumb to…infection or something."

"Insurance, huh?"

Ruby nodded. "That's what they said. Do you know why?"

Weiss sighed. "It'd be quite a lengthy explanation I'd rather not get into right now."

"Oh, okay!" Ruby instantly blurted. "I'm sorry, I'm being a bit nosy, aren't I?"

"I can't really blame you…"

A quick silence overfell the room. Weiss kept a careful eye on Ruby as she looked around the room once again. Her eyes then lit up as she locked on to something that sat by the door.

"Oh!" she cried, Weiss starting to pick up on the fact that the girl used that word quite often, almost like a personal quirk. "Are you hungry?"

As Ruby made her way back over to the tub, now holding a bowl which contained something steaming, Weiss sat up a bit straighter.

"I…wasn't sure what mermaids eat, and this might be something you'd consider 'human food,' so I don't even know if you'll like it, but you've got to be hungry right? Cinder said they fed you, but I'm not willing to believe that completely, so I made sure our cook made a big bowl of our dinner for you as well. Sorry it's not fish. Do mermaids eat fish? Or is that considered cannibalism?"

"Ruby!" Weiss jumped in with a small chuckle before the girl could start another tangent.

The captain looked back down at her, though she still looked deep in thought about the diet of a mermaid.

"Whatever you have I'm sure is fine," she explained.

"Oh, well good!"

Weiss's smile grew even more at that one word again. With a pointed glance at the bowl the little captain still held, Ruby quickly handed it over with a blush. A spoon was quickly given to her as well.

"It's… It's a stew. The brown is pieces of meat—I think beef—and the other chunks are potatoes. Then the sauce is just a bunch of cheese and cream. It's…kind of this ship's signature dish. We kinda live off the stuff."

"Well, it smells good at least," Weiss felt like mentioning if only to alleviate the worry Ruby seemed burdened with.

With that, she took a small bite and immediately her senses were overloaded.

This was delicious! Much more flavorful than anything she had eaten before.

"Is it good?" Ruby asked meekly.

Weiss couldn't find it in herself to hide her joy.

"It's amazing! I don't know what any of the things are that are in here, but I've never tasted something so good!"

Ruby beamed her brightest smile yet, and Weiss quickly thought that Ruby's smile would be enough to light any sized port even on the darkest of nights.

Weiss finished the bowl in record timing for herself—and second best on the entire ship after Ruby herself—and still found herself craving more. Usually she ate very little and quite politely at that, but she figured being locked up on a ship for the past week eating only the occasional small fish thrown at her had made her push aside her standards in favor of filling her stomach.

Still, she chewed her lip as she studied her empty bowl, wondering if she was in any position to ask for more.

Luckily, Ruby saved her the trouble.

"Do you want some more?" she asked. "Like I said, we live off the stuff, so I'm sure there's plenty left. Want me to go look?"

Weiss couldn't find the gall to look the captain in the eyes as she handed her bowl over with a flush.

"Please," she mumbled.

Ruby just chuckled. "No need to be embarrassed! It's amazing, right? I always eat at least three bowls myself each meal, so no judgments here!"

"I just don't want to impose…"

"Oh, it's okay! After all, _mi casa es tu casa_ ; or…whatever the Spanish word is for ship, I guess."

Weiss had no idea what Ruby had just said, but she found the girl's energetic, vibrant behavior seemed to seep into every crevice around her, causing Weiss to simply chuckle instead of getting frustrated.

"I'll be right back!"

With that, the little captain left, and Weiss was alone once again. She was about to sink beneath the surface once more when she remembered the wound on her side. The bleeding seemed to have stopped as the water no longer had a red tint to it, but a slight wiggle to test did still send a shock of pain throughout her body.

Paranoia causing her to check her surroundings even though she knew Ruby had just exited, Weiss made sure she was alone once more before carefully pulling back the bandage.

The wound surprisingly didn't look too bad, all things considered. The skin around the tear was puckered and pink, but Weiss let a relieved smile break upon knowing there wouldn't be any kind of scar.

With one more look around for safe measure, she gently pressed three fingers to the wound and concentrated.

A soft blue light was emitted from her fingertips as it expanded to cover the entire gash. Biting her lip from the slight pain, she watched as the wound slowly shrank in size, before closing completely. As she removed her hand, the glow died out, and in its place was flawless skin. No indication of any injury present at all.

Weiss couldn't hold back her confident smirk.

* * *

"Ruby!" Yang exclaimed as the captain walked in to the cafeteria where the rest of the crew still sat.

"Hey, Yang," Ruby greeted. "Any stew left?"

"Plenty as usual," Ren replied, scooting the large pot down the table.

"Yeah, I'm sure you must be starving, Rubes!" Yang spoke back up. "You just went straight to your room after raiding Cinder. You know…with the _mermaid_?"

"I did nab a quick bowl for me, but this one is for Weiss," Ruby replied casually, either ignoring everyone's bewildered stares or going oblivious to all of them. "She's really hungry, plus the fact that she was too shy to outright ask for more was super cute."

"Weiss?" Blake repeated as a question.

"You're _feeding_ it?!" Yang took the turn to erupt.

" _Her_ , yes," Ruby corrected her sister with a weird look. "And yes, Weiss is her name. Now, I'll be in my room."

Dumbfounded looks followed the captain out, leaving the room in quite an awkward silence.

"So…" Jaune piped up with a nervous laugh. "That was a thing."

Yang just glared at him before stomping out after her sister, Blake rolling her eyes and following the blonde, knowing she'd surely be needed to diffuse the situation.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

Weiss was disrupted from her peace by the sound of thundering footsteps approaching as well as two distinct voices; one of which she recognized as Ruby's, who sounded frustrated.

Once the door was nearly pushed open off its hinges by an irate blonde, Weiss could understand why the young captain sounded so distressed.

As the blonde stomped her way over to Weiss, amethyst eyes nearly alighting in a furious red, the mermaid couldn't help the inkling of fear beginning to stir in her stomach.

" _You_ ," the blonde growled, pointing an accusing finger at Weiss, an unfriendly, distrusting, nearly disgusted look smeared across her face. "Talk."

"Is that any way to ask?" Weiss snapped back. She didn't know who this girl thought she was, and while her size and build were intimidating, Weiss refused to back down.

"Listen, you… _creature_ —!"

" _Yang!_ "

The anger that erupted from Ruby at the outburst surprised even the angered blonde, the lone brunette who lingered in the doorway jumping from surprise as well.

Weiss's own surprise, however, came when Ruby stomped her way in between the blonde oaf, who must be Yang, and herself trapped in the tub. Her stomach lurched against her will at the sight of Ruby coming to her defense, arms spread out and everything in front of her.

"Were you not listening in the cafeteria?" Ruby asked. "Her _name_ is _Weiss_."

"It's a _mermaid_ , Ruby," Yang still stubbornly retorted.

" _She_." Ruby refused to back down, her body becoming even tenser as she leaned towards Yang.

Yang scoffed before she backed down, sighing heavily. Ruby still didn't let her stance waver, and Weiss noticed her flinch when Yang turned back around, the anger having sizzled out for the time being, but frustration and confusion still present.

"Rubes, are you sure bringing her aboard the ship was a good idea? I mean, _she's_ still a mermaid."

"She was hurt, Yang!" Ruby exclaimed, her temper still not quite quelled, though she did finally drop the protective stance. "You saw it yourself! What, you wanted me to leave her on Cinder's ship? She was _hurt_!" she reiterated. "She's starving, and she was being mistreated. I don't care what any stories may say; I'm helping her. And, for the record, she's _nice_ ; not like that'd make any difference with you."

Yang sneered at her over Ruby's shoulder, and Weiss tried to glare back, but it probably didn't come off as intimidating from her position down in the lowly bathtub.

"Yeah?" Yang spoke then. "Then what happened to her injury?"

Weiss felt her blood freeze then as Ruby spun to finally face her.

"Wha—?"

Sure enough, as Ruby examined the flesh she _knew_ had been ripped open, now it was completely flawless. Eyes trailing up to Weiss's and picking up on the fear and the hope for an explanation shimmering in those blue eyes, Ruby's own softened.

"It healed," she quipped, even though she knew it was a lame answer.

"It heal— " Yang laughed and rolled her eyes. "Ruby, is this not sinking in? There's a _mermaid in your bathtub_. A mermaid that was _injured and now suddenly isn't._ She obviously used come kind of _magic, just like the stories say_."

"So?" Ruby rebutted. "She hasn't done anything so far to give me any reason not to trust her. While her wound vanishing is shocking, it hasn't harmed any of us in any way, has it? So what's the issue?"

Weiss felt her heart swell a bit at the captain's unwavering trust in her. She knew from experience—and not just her recent encounter with Cinder—the pedestal that humans viewed her kind from, as well as their vast ignorance in anything different from them. The fact that Ruby didn't seem frightened by any of this, didn't seem to think any less of Weiss because of what she was, was heartwarming. She couldn't help the small smile that grew on her lips.

It quickly vanished, however, as soon as Yang caught it.

"Don't you dare smile," she growled. "She can't protect you forever."

" _ **Yang!**_ "

Again, everyone in the room jumped at the captain's outburst. Spinning so she was facing Weiss again and her back was to Yang, Ruby clenched her eyes shut, her hands balling into tight fists.

"Get. Out," she muttered darkly.

Yang's face instantly fell. "But, Rubes— "

"Go _away_ , Yang!"

As Yang stood there frozen, the silent brunette finally stepped up to the blonde, taking her by the hand gently.

"Come on, Yang," she spoke in a smooth voice. Weiss instantly knew she was the peacekeeper among the crew. "You both need to cool off. Ruby's fine on her own."

Yang followed without a fight, and once she was out the door, the other girl looked over her shoulder at Weiss.

 _"Sorry,"_ she mouthed, before shutting the door behind them.

As Weiss listened to the pair's footsteps fade back down the hall, she peered up at Ruby.

And her heart broke.

The girl had tears leaking from her eyelids, and Weiss could see her arms shaking; whether it was due to holding back her sobs or something else, Weiss wouldn't ask.

"Ruby?" she called out softly.

Watery silver was revealed to her, as well as a weak smile.

"S-Sorry you had to see that," she choked out.

"Would you believe me if I said I was used to it?" Weiss tried to lighten the mood.

Unfortunately, her attempt at a joke seemed to have the opposite effect.

"You shouldn't have to be," Ruby mumbled, looking down at the floor with a hardened look to her gaze now.

Weiss gulped as Ruby walked away and over to a desk pushed into a far corner of the room. She didn't know what to say now; all she knew was that she wanted to cheer Ruby up. Things had been going so well before she left. Now the bright, bubbly, silly girl she had just met was an empty shell.

It didn't feel right.

It almost made Weiss sick.

She knew she didn't even know Ruby, but she was still certain the captain wasn't ever supposed to look like this. Obviously, if the surprise on her crewmates just now was any indication.

Biting her lip, Weiss decided to take a shot in the dark and try and get Ruby talking again.

"Why did you defend me?" she asked softly.

Ruby looked surprised she had asked that as she spun to face her, but still made no move to approach.

"Because it's like I said: You haven't given me any reason to treat you harshly. Mermaid or not, it doesn't matter to me. You still have feelings. You were still scared and hurt. I…I couldn't just leave you there."

Weiss smiled at the girl's compassion and empathy. It was rare to meet a human like Ruby. In all her nineteen years, any experience Weiss had ever had with a human was like Yang or Cinder: distrust, fear, aggression, being exploited for who she was. No one ever looked past _what_ she was to discover _who_ she was.

"Well," she began softly before gaining more confidence in each word she spoke, "you haven't given me a reason to distrust you either, Ruby."

The captain looked back up at her and smiled shyly.

"T-Thanks, Weiss," she mumbled with a slight blush.

Weiss couldn't help but think it was absolutely adorable.

They let a few moments pass quietly, but before it stretched on too much longer, Ruby finally sighed and moved back towards the tub, sitting down in the chair Weiss had first found her in.

"I am…curious how you got your wound to disappear completely though," she spoke mostly under her breath, as if she was ashamed to be questioning such a circumstance. "That was a pretty deep gash, and now it's just…gone."

"Well," Weiss shifted in the water, "it's as the stories say, I suppose."

Ruby looked at her then, and the corner of Weiss's lips twitched into a smile at the complete awe shimmering in silver irises now. It was a much better look for the young captain than tears.

"So you really do have magic?" Ruby asked.

"Would you like an example?"

Blinking, Ruby cocked her head not unlike a confused puppy, and Weiss covered her giggle behind a hand.

"An example…?"

"I suppose with all the hassle, you hadn't noticed, but you have a small cut on your right cheek," Weiss pointed out.

Raising a hand to said place, Ruby flinched slightly at the small bite of pain that came from the pressure. Sure enough, when she pulled her hand away, a minimal amount of blood was present on her fingertips.

"O-Oh."

Gulping, and hoping she wasn't overstepping her bounds, Weiss sat up straighter in the tub. "M-May I?"

Both girls were blushing equally as Ruby nodded her consent. Gingerly, Weiss cupped Ruby's injured cheek before letting her eyes slide shut. The captain was about to ask if she was supposed to be feeling anything when she could see a faint blue light glowing in her peripherals. Soon, her entire face began to feel warm, and Ruby knew it wasn't simply from her flustered state. The feeling was comforting, healing; and though she couldn't see it directly, Ruby could picture her cut sealing up, quite literally able to feel the skin begin to stitch itself back together.

"There," Weiss uttered, pulling her hand away, and Ruby wondered if the way the mermaid let her fingers brush under Ruby's chin in her retreat was intentional.

It took a second for Ruby to collect herself before she was darting over to her bedside table and rummaging through it. Finally finding what she was looking for, the captain pulled out a small mirror. Opening it, she gasped.

"It's…gone…"

As Weiss watched the pirate rub her cheek over and over while closely examining where there had once been a cut, she began to fret whether she should have just done what she did. Was showcasing her powers like that really a good idea? Granted, it was Ruby, the girl who herself had just saved her life, the least she could do to repay her was fix a small cut, but still…

Weiss remembered the last time she tried interacting with a human and shuddered.

Luckily, Ruby's excited squeal quickly made any painful memories retreat for the time being.

"Oh my god!" the girl exclaimed, spinning to face Weiss, another one of her bright smiles feeding into every dark crevice of the room. "Weiss, that's amazing!"

Weiss also wondered if the frequency with which she had been blushing should be concerning as well.

"It's nothing…" she mumbled abashedly.

"Don't be so modest!" Ruby giggled, plopping back down in the chair. "Humans can't use magic; don't you understand what a rush this all is for me? Not only have I learned that mermaids are real and possess magic, they're not the vicious sea creatures depicted in the stories, and they're not hideous creatures with the sole intent to steal from and hurt humans; they're beautiful and kind which is only enhanced tenfold by their magic!"

 _B-Beautiful?_ Weiss's heart rate picked up at the compliment, though part of her told it not to because Ruby was using it to describe _all_ mermaids, not just her.

"So that's how your stories tell us, is it?" Weiss asked with a small chuckle. "Vicious, ugly creatures who only pillage and harm?" Smirking, she looked at Ruby and added, "Sounds a lot like what we're taught about humans; pirates in particular."

This time it was Ruby's turn to blush.

"Then apparently we aren't as different as the stories want us to believe," she said timidly.

"Indeed…" Weiss muttered, not even bothering to hide how she studied Ruby in that moment. How the girl's short hair framed her round face perfectly, how the way she chewed on her lip left a pleasant tingle running down Weiss's spine, how her eyes had a personality all to themselves, especially when they were staring into her own.

How her cheeks lit up to the cutest hue of pink Weiss had ever seen.

How her lips framed each and every word she spoke perfectly.

How a nervous giggle accompanied the special song she gave Weiss's name.

Wait…

"Weiss?"

Crap.

"Do I have another scrape?"

Weiss relented the fact she was in a bathtub at the moment, for she wished she could just swim to the bottom of the sea and never emerge just to escape Ruby's absolutely clueless—yet absolutely adorable—face right about now.

* * *

Ruby couldn't believe she was fighting back tears. Part of her mind was criticizing her tear ducts and claiming they were merely leaking; after all, what good reason did she have for crying?

Even though Weiss was looking up at her from the water down below with that infuriatingly adorable smile and her cheeks tinted pink.

Even though there was no reason she should ever see Weiss again, now that she had been rescued from Cinder and had been able to heal herself.

 _Screw it_ , the part of Ruby that wasn't busy shaming her body's natural reactions cursed.

"Will I ever see you again?" she called down from the balcony off from her bedroom.

She could see Weiss shrug, though she kept the easy-going smile on her face. "The sea is pretty vast, but I wouldn't cut it off entirely as a possibility."

"We'll… We're heading to Mistral next," Ruby told her, not even bothering to hide the blind hope that lilted her voice. "We'll be there a while. A lot of my crew has family there."

Weiss's smile only continued to grow as she responded with, "Mistral's still awfully far."

Although when the mermaid saw the captain's features deflate, she chuckled.

"Though we mermaids do have the ability to swim upwards of fifty miles an hour, so I wouldn't necessarily rule that out as a possibility either."

"Yeah?"

Again, the hope present in the captain's sigh lifted Weiss's heart. Deciding to lay off the teasing, she answered honestly, putting as much conviction into her words as she could.

"Yeah."

Ruby grinned then, and Weiss matched hers in intensity. They spent a shameless moment gazing at the other before they realized what they were doing—as well as the fact that they had been caught—and looked away.

"Bye, Weiss," Ruby spoke first. "Be careful, okay?"

"You're the pirate," Weiss replied with a smirk, though she knew Ruby could easily read the pain in her eyes at their departure. She hadn't been trying too hard to disguise it after all. "Shouldn't I be worried about _your_ safety pillaging and plundering?"

Ruby giggled. "We're not really much on pillaging and plundering. Honestly, we're not much of pirates at all."

"Well you sure put on a good show," Weiss playfully jabbed.

Ruby just blushed, and Weiss figured she better take her leave before she chickened out. Diving back under the water briefly, she shot the pirate captain one final smile.

"Goodbye, Ruby."

As soon as Weiss saw the first tear fall, she quickly turned away, her own stomach beginning to churn in discomfort.

Yet, as she dove below the surface more and more, she knew she couldn't leave before doing one final thing. Using her tail as a springboard off the ocean's bottom, Weiss shot up like a missile.

She broke the surface with incredible momentum and immediately heard Ruby cry out incredulously. Grinning and feeling the freest she had in weeks, Weiss performed two backflips before straightening out so she could catch one last glance of Ruby before she went back under.

The girl's jaw was nearly unhinged in disbelief, that look of awe shimmering in her silver eyes once more, though the tears that lined her cheeks didn't look nearly as sad now.

Weiss could leave in peace.

Up on the balcony, Ruby nearly spontaneously combusted from the wink the mermaid shot her before she was back under the waves with a splash. But as she saw the shadow she knew was Weiss swim off, Ruby opened her mouth for one final holler.

" _I hope I see you again, Weiss!_ "

And as she turned around to head back into her quarters, she would fail to see the shadow stop and turn around.

* * *

 **I don't make any promises on when the next chapter will be out, but I will be taking this story off hiatus. While my motivation is still lacking greatly, I did originally promise you all a mermaid/pirate fic, and I'm going to deliver. Whether that takes until the end of the year or next, no one knows.**

 **But yay for useless lesbian pirates and mermaids!**


	4. Chapter 4

**So, since it's been so long since I started this fic, I have absolutely no idea what my original plans for it were. That being said, it's basically been reduced to meaningless fluff—which isn't always a bad thing, right? It also will most likely be no longer than ten chapters. I have a few more ideas I'd like to include, but don't be expecting any huge plot twist or climatic final act. This is now just an easy-going fluff piece.**

 **This chapter is also dedicated to the-heart-alchemist. Hope this sates your White Rose desires for the time being!**

* * *

 **Chapter Four**

The _Crescent Rose_ creaked and groaned as waves lapped against it in a steady, soothing pattern. The resulting motion was calming, and Ruby basked in the feeling as she lay on the bed in her quarters. Aside from the noise from the ship itself, all was quiet on the vessel, and the captain soaked in the peace from that as well.

She and her crew had docked in Mistral's largest port just hours ago, and her friends had all eagerly disembarked to hit up the shops and taverns, as well as reunite with friends and family. Ruby, however, chose to stay aboard her ship. No one raised any questions about her actions, though Yang's suspicious stare had been quite obvious as Blake had deliberately led her from the ship.

It wasn't that Ruby wasn't excited to be back in Mistral, rather, her mind was simply so occupied that she couldn't think straight or focus.

After all, how was she expected to act like everything was normal when she just days ago had an encounter with a supposed mythical creature?

Her experience with the mermaid— _Weiss_ , she reminded herself with a fond smile—was all that had pervaded her mind for their last few days on the water.

Mermaids were real.

Magic was real.

What, she was supposed to just forget all about it and go back to acting like everything was before their last encounter with the _Fall Maiden_?

Easier said than done.

Especially since she still had so many questions. What was Cinder using Weiss for insurance against? How did Weiss manage to get caught in the first place? Surely she had been taught humans were dangerous, and from what Ruby gathered in their brief time together, the mermaid seemed very intelligent and careful. Her initial apprehension towards Ruby told the young captain all she needed to know.

What was life like for a mermaid? Ruby never did learn if their diet actually did consist strictly of sea creatures, though she didn't know why _that_ was one of the questions she wanted answered most among all the others.

Where did Weiss live? Were there actual cities and towns underwater just like humans inhabited on the ground? Was construction the same? What in the world would homes and buildings be built out of? Sand? Coral?

Yet, even with all these questions about mermaids—and magic—in general, the most pressing question still remained:

Would she ever see Weiss again?

Sure, Weiss had said they would, but part of Ruby knew she had just done so to keep her spirits up. Weiss had her own life to get back to. She had been held hostage aboard Cinder's ship for at least a week, surely she was anxious to see her family. Meanwhile, Ruby had a ship to captain; treasures she was expected to plunder. She couldn't just sit and mope in her cabin, no matter how depressive Ruby continued to get as she thought of just truly _how_ large the ocean was.

"Guess I should go try and join the others," she mumbled, sitting upright on her bed and stretching. "Gotta say I'm surprised Yang hasn't barged in here to try and degrade Weiss more. Bet she'd be elated to know she's gone…"

With a heavy sigh, Ruby had just opened her cabin door when a quiet _tap_ made her stop. She knew all the sounds her ship made when she was docked, and that most definitely was not one of them.

 _Tap._

 _Tap._

The noise continued, and Ruby quickly deduced it was coming from behind her. Turning, she was just in time to see something small ricochet off her window. One eyebrow raised curiously, she strode over to the small circular porthole, immediately seeing nothing.

Until another pebble glanced off before her, the same _tap_ accompanying it.

Stepping out onto the narrow balcony from her cabin, Ruby looked down…

And a face-splitting grin quickly took over her features.

"Weiss!"

The mermaid looked up from her place in the waves below, a small pile of unused pebbles resting in the palm of her hand. She sent a coy smile up to the captain.

"I told you you'd see me again," she said.

Ruby giggled, completely overjoyed and thrown for a loop.

"How did you find us? I mean, I know I told you where we were going, but… Didn't you go home? How fast can you _swim_?"

Weiss rolled her eyes, but the smile never left her face, showing she wasn't the least bit annoyed.

"I believe I already told you we're quite fast swimmers, and as for finding you…" She looked away briefly, and Ruby's stomach churned when she saw a subtle tint of pink spread across the creature's cheeks, "I never went home. I started swimming away, but then I just…"

Weiss met Ruby's eyes again, wavering blue meeting shimmering silver, and Ruby smiled encouragingly, egging Weiss to continue.

"It's stupid," she grumbled.

Ruby laughed again. "No, it's not, Weiss."

"I didn't want to leave so soon," Weiss eventually finished, her voice still quiet from embarrassment as she again refused to look at Ruby.

"You didn't?" Ruby parroted, her heart taking flight inside her chest.

The mermaid hesitantly met her eyes once more, and twin fires spread across their faces at the look each was giving the other, chemistry flickering back to life between them.

"You're not the first human I've met, Ruby—even before Cinder—but you're so different than anyone else. At first I thought you were just weird, but now I just find you…alluring."

Ruby's blush intensified, and she only hoped the distance from which they spoke to the other helped conceal just how red her face was now.

Alluring? No one had ever called her that before; not even her own shipmates, her own _sister_. Charming, sure. Clever, sharp-minded, and personable, but _never_ alluring.

It was flattering, to say the least.

And the fact that it had come from Weiss made the moment even more special.

"W-Well," she stammered, "you're alluring too, Weiss. In fact, I haven't stopped thinking about you since we parted ways."

Weiss's eyes widened at that bit of information, and it did nothing to help her own blush recede. Upon realizing what she had just admitted, however, Ruby wanted to throw herself overboard—and _not_ have the mermaid save her.

"I-I m-mean..." Now it was her turn to look away from Weiss. "Sorry, that's pretty creepy, isn't it?"

Weiss still seemed a touch stunned from the admission, but she did manage to respond, "Not any creepier than me saying you're alluring, I suppose."

A nervous chuckle flitted down from the balcony as Ruby rubbed the back of her neck.

A moment of silence passed between the two as they both struggled with how to proceed. The silence was killing both of them, but neither knew how to ask what they wanted without sounding any more awkward.

Finally, Ruby swallowed her pride and asked what they were both dying to.

"Do y-you…want to go somewhere where it's easier to talk? I'm sure you're getting a crick in your neck from looking up at me."

Weiss didn't even try to hide her eager nod, nor how her entire face lit up at the question.

"There's a small section of the shoreline that's out of view from the port. You'll have to climb over a few rocks, but it's a quiet area and…secluded."

"Yeah, I guess you don't really want to parade yourself around, huh?"

Weiss chuckled. "An astute deduction there, captain."

Ruby just flushed as red as her namesake again and Weiss's grin simply widened at the reaction.

"I'll… Give me a few minutes to get there and I'll meet you?"

Weiss nodded. "Take a right once you leave the docks and travel the length of the beach until you reach a bunch of rocks. I'll be right on the other side."

Ruby mirrored her nod. "Okay," she smiled. "I'll be there."

"See you soon."

The captain waited until Weiss dove back beneath the water, watching her nearly in a daze as her darkened form swam off. Realizing she didn't want to make her wait any longer than she'd have to, Ruby quickly dashed back inside before she was emerging up on the deck and disembarking her ship.

She could hear music and laughter coming from one of the taverns that was right by the docks and quickly breezed past it, hoping if her any of her crew was in there, they didn't happen to be looking out the window. She jumped off a ledge which landed her on the thin beach that curved off to her right. Following Weiss's instructions, she stayed on her path until she could no more, several large boulders now obstructing the way.

"Weiss just assumes I can climb this?" she mumbled to herself. "I think she's giving me more credit than I deserve."

Still, she approached the rocks, examining them for the easiest way up and over. Luckily, where the boulders met the foliage of Mistral's wilderness, there was a small gap in between two rocks that was just big enough for Ruby to squeeze through. Almost like it was there just so she and Weiss could have a secret spot. Another smile stretching her cheeks, Ruby clamored up onto one boulder before shimmying her way through the opening.

When she jumped down, sand beneath her feet once more, she didn't dare move. For the umpteenth time in just the past hour, heat flooded Ruby's face, her throat growing dry at the sight before her.

Weiss had pulled herself up onto a slab of rock that rested upon the sand and was busy wringing out her hair. The sunlight danced off her scales, making them flicker back colors of the rainbow as her tail swished contently in the gentle waves that lapped up on the rock.

Ruby remained mesmerized as she watched the girl carefully pull her hair back into an off center ponytail. If Ruby had thought Weiss was beautiful with her hair down, then she look sophisticated in a ponytail. She looked as though she commanded respect and attention.

Attention that Ruby was only too happy to give.

"U-Uh…"

Weiss immediately looked her way at her stammer and a smile lit up her face.

"I knew those rocks would prove to be no match for you."

"A-Are you kidding?" Ruby tried to collect herself. "I'm a pirate; nothing can stand in my way."

"Does that make me the treasure you're seeking then?"

Ruby could have sworn she spontaneously combusted in that moment. Yet when the musical ring of Weiss's laughter reached her ears, she knew she had probably just short-circuited instead.

"I'm sorry, Ruby," she said from behind a hand, keeping more laughter back. "I couldn't help myself. You're too fun to tease."

Ruby pouted at that before sticking her nose up in the air with a small "hmph."

"Well then," she tried to say in a serious tone, though she couldn't wipe the smile off her face no matter how hard she tried. "Maybe I'll just go join my crew in town. Not like _they_ tease me all the time too."

When they both succumbed to the laughter that time, neither could remember feeling this happy and at ease.

* * *

"…And it was then I just knew I wanted to spend my life on the sea," Ruby concluded what had to be at least the tenth tale shared between them.

The two had spent the past several hours talking about anything and nothing.

Correction…

 _Ruby_ had been talking about anything and nothing. Weiss had been diligently listening, a fond smile held throughout many of the captains—sometimes slightly fabricated—tales.

"So you and your sister just left home?" Weiss finally spoke up, adjusting her position on the rock she still reclined in. "Don't you ever want to go back?"

Ruby shrugged her shoulders, her arms themselves keeping her propped up in the sand next to Weiss. She had long ago discarded her boots and rolled up her pant legs, letting the waves splash over her feet and calves much like they were doing to Weiss's tail.

"We've gone back a few times, but we don't make any major effort to," the captain replied. "Like coming back to Mistral. Nothing's every really planned, we just happened to be closest to Anima, Nora, Ren, and Pyrrha all have some kind of family here, so we decided to make this the next stop. After this…who knows?"

"That amount of freedom must be pretty nice," Weiss mumbled, Ruby quickly picking up on her bitter tone.

"Come on, Weiss," Ruby chuckled nervously. "You're a mermaid; don't you have all the freedom in the world too?"

"Not when you have a father like mine. How do you think I wound up on Cinder's ship?"

Ruby blinked before balking, "You ran away?!"

Weiss just huffed before sitting up straighter, crossing her arms in her lap as she stared out at the horizon.

"It's not like it was the first time…"

"I guess…I just never thought…" Ruby tried to choose her words carefully. "Everyone always says mermaids live in a utopian society; that's why they're so vicious and callous: they have to preserve that paradise."

"You can still feel trapped even in the perfect society, Ruby."

Ruby leaned forward herself when Weiss didn't immediately look back at her, instead hunching forward so her shoulders came up to her ears, her ponytail drooping down her chest.

Hesitantly, Ruby crawled onto the rock before placing a gentle hand on Weiss's shoulder. The mermaid instinctively flinched, but didn't pull away.

"I'm sorry I assumed," Ruby told her softly.

Weiss simply shook her head. "You had no way of knowing," she replied. "I suppose…to human standards, our society is perfect, like some kind of Eden. We don't suffer from plagues, disease doesn't run rampant, our economy is stable; it is…a utopia, as you put it."

Ruby wasn't really quite sure what to say next. Comfort had never really been her strong suit; that had usually been Yang's job. Luckily, it seemed, Weiss just continued talking.

"Maybe if I wasn't born into the family I was, I'd see my life more like you all do."

"Your family…?"

Weiss chuckled under her breath once more before looking over her shoulder to Ruby with a grim smile.

"My father. He's…basically the ruler of our city."

Ruby blinked again, her hand limply falling from Weiss.

Then…

" _You're a princess?!"_

Weiss flinched, whether from the pitch of Ruby's voice of the truth of the statement, it was unsure.

"Well, technically I'm not, since we don't have monarchs of any kind. Our social hierarchy simply consists of one individual who leads his society. My family has been in that seat of power for a long time, apparently."

"So even those fairytales about princesses are true, huh?" Ruby asked with a small laugh of her own. "Your father keeps you trapped, effectively. And if you don't want to just wait for your prince charming or whatever, you make your own life."

"Maybe I would've been better waiting for prince charming," Weiss grumbled. "I doubt he would've gotten me caught."

Ruby smiled before playfully nudging Weiss's shoulder with her own, hoping to cheer the girl back up.

"Hey, you can be your own knight in shining armor," she said. "And everyone makes mistakes. I mean, did you know I once led my crew right into a—quite obvious, looking back on it—trap set up by a kingdom's navy just a few months ago?" At Weiss's inquisitive arched eyebrow, Ruby giggled and continued, "Yep! We all spent about four days in jail before Blake somehow managed to escape and get the rest of us out. Needless to say, there was talk to vote in a new captain after that."

"And yet they decided to keep you as captain after all that?" Weiss asked, and Ruby's stomach flipped pleasantly as the teasing tone gracefully oozed back into the mermaid's words.

Ruby laughed, and Weiss's smile only grew.

"Honestly, no one else wanted the job, so they just decided they were stuck with me."

"I'm sure they also realized you made an honest mistake."

"Then you should realize that's all you did as well, Weiss."

Weiss didn't say anything in rebuttal, simply turned to look back out at the sea before them, so Ruby counted it as a small victory. Still, one question remained.

"So Cinder was keeping you as insurance because you're essentially royalty? Or…what humans consider royalty?"

"She would have wound up sorely surprised when my father made no offer for my release," Weiss said.

"Because that's not how mermaids work?" An uneasy feeling was steadily churning in Ruby's stomach.

Weiss's uneasy stutter of "r-right" did nothing to quell the captain's worries.

Still, Ruby refused to keep their conversation going down the dark path it had managed to turn on. She needed something to cheer Weiss up; get them back to the playful banter she was quickly growing addicted to.

That's when the most pleasant aroma filled the beach around them.

Weiss instantly perked up.

"That…smells _amazing_!"

Ruby giggled as she watched Weiss nearly swoon. Suddenly she had the perfect idea. Standing abruptly, she started the mermaid beside her in her haste.

"I'll be back!" she cried as she stumbled over herself trying to get her boots back on. "Don't go anywhere, okay?"

"W-What…?"

"I promise!" Ruby exclaimed, her eyes sparking affirming her claim. Quickly growing meek once more, however, she squeaked out, "Wait for me?"

That lovely, easy-going smile of Weiss's spread across her face once more, and Ruby's nerves immediately settled.

"Just don't be gone too long," Weiss told her. "And it is beginning to get dark, so be careful on your way back."

Nodding determinedly, Ruby exclaimed, "I will!"

She had almost disappeared back through the crevice in the rocks when she poked her head back through. Weiss was still looking her way, and the mermaid chuckled at the captain looking back.

"I'll be here, Ruby. I promise."

She knew Weiss didn't miss the blush that relit her face, but found she didn't even care anymore. Head held high, and chest swelled with joy, Ruby quickly made her way back to the port town.

She didn't want to keep her new friend waiting.


End file.
